The Lakeside Double Sprint Triathlon was last Saturday, June 15 at Lakeside Park in South Carolina. There were 115 participants at the event which made for an exciting evening. Most triathlons are in the morning, but since this is at a water-park (at least the swim portion), the race was scheduled for a Saturday evening at 6PM.

I arrived around 4:15PM to set-up and warm-up. It was pretty warm and humid evening, which is fairly typical for South Carolina this time of year. After warm-up (short bike ride and 1 mile run) I made my way to the pool.

The double triathlon consisted a 250 yard swim, 8 mile bike, and 2.1 mile run, followed by a 250 yard swim, 8 mile bike, and 2.1 mile run. The swim was a wave start (each person starts every 5-10 seconds) so I finally got into the pool around 6:15PM. Here's how my times break down:

Swim 1: 5:57
T1: 0:50
Bike 1: 23:05
T2: 0:40
Run 1: 14:00
T3: 0:32
Swim 2: 7:08
T40: 0:53
Bike 2: 23:56
T5: 0:32
Run 2: 13:55
TOTAL: 1:31

The swims were predicatly my slowest events, the bikes were great, and the runs were surprisingly fast. I felt very strong on the runs which was honestly a pleasant surprise. Two years ago at this race my time was 1:35; last year it was 1:33; and this year it was 1:31. I'm thankful for the trend in my time. I managed to place 2nd in my age group and 15th out of 115 overall. It was a great race with great friends. Looking forward to the next outing!

There something special about being able to celebrate a holiday (for your dad) and being celebrated on a holiday (as a dad). I am so thankful for my dad and his impact on my life and on the lives of my sons. Here are a few of my favorites sayings that my dad has told us over the years:

“Hug your momma.”
“Love them to Jesus.”
“Love people and use things; don’t use people and love things.”
“Leave a place better than you found it.”
“Listen and hustle.”
“I have something very important to tell you: I love you.”
“I’m rich in all the right ways.”
“We are looking at things that will one day be ashes through eyes that will one day be dust.”

I am hopeful and prayerful that I can be a dad for my boys that speaks and shows the love of Jesus like my dad has done for his kids for so many years.
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Love you, Dad! Happy Father’s Day!

The Mountains to Main 5k race on May 18 was a blast. The race started from the Swamp Rabbit Cafe at 7AM (the same time the 1/2 Marathon started in Traveler's Rest) and ended on the TD Bank outdoor stage in downtown Greenville.

My goal was to finish in under 19 minutes. The race started on time and immediately went uphill. We ran on a slight incline for the first half mile and then it flattened out. The uphill was fine though I did not stay on the needed pace. Part of it was the uphill which naturally slowed us down; and the other part was my desire not to go too fast too soon, so I held back. That may not have been the best decision. Around mile one there was a slight downhill to get us all onto the Swamp Rabbit Trail where it was flat for the rest of the race. I stayed on pace for the next mile and appreciated the flatness of the course.

I checked my watch at mile marker two and realized it would be extremely difficult to increase the pace to finish under 19 minutes. I needed to run less than a 6-minute mile for the final mile of the race. I pushed but it was not hard enough. My finishing time was 19:37.

While I missed my goal, I was thankful to finish 1st in my 35-39 Age Group out of 23 people and 12th overall out of 400 people which is the top 3% of the entire field. Overall, it was a good time. Now to keep pushing to hit my sub-19 goal!

The Infinite Game by Simon Sinek is a fantastic book for any leader and particularly organization leaders. Simon Sinek is a writer and speaker that focuses on organizational transformation through leadership and building people. He runs the Optimism Company. He wrote Start with Why, Leaders Eat Last, and, more recently, The Infinite Game. I believe it’s his best book yet. Here is a 25 minute talk that Simon Sinek gave to educators about the Infinite Game that I highly recommend. Organizational leaders must approach leadership with an Infinite Game mindset in which courageous and caring leaders lead with purpose, passion, and energy. We cannot manage people. We must lead them and build trusting teams.

We are five months into the 252 Circle and just completed our monthly group call last night (May 6). Overall, I am thrilled with the progress of the group members and their commitment to making consistent choices to grow intellectually, physically, spiritually, and relationally and reach their stated goals. I am learning more about the process and how to be encouraging and (as needed) challenging to the group members. It's truly a remarkable group - and as I reflect upon each successive call I grow in appreciation for them and the efforts they're putting in to make progress.

The format for the class is that we just talk and catch up for 10-15 minutes and ask how people are doing with family, job, etc. Then we take a few minutes for each person to provide an update on their goals and how they're doing. It's an open discussion where we discuss highs and lows - successes and failures - in taking steps to reach our goals. We're able to advise, suggest ideas, and encourage various members in their pursuit. We also spend time praying asking for God's grace and strength to be at work in us (and through us) as we seek to love Him and others with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength.

I'm excited for the coming months!

The monthly goals for May look a lot like monthly goals from April with a few tweaks. It's been said that consistency is more important than intensity - and I tend to agree. Personal growth can appear boring at times in regards to a lack of variety, but that is ok for me. I don't mind boring.

Daily Goals for May

• Read the Psalm & Proverb of the day (based on the date)
• Read Philippians 1-2.
• Read a few pages of another book.
• Take Fish Oil, Magnesium, Vitamin C, Zinc, and Probiotics.
• Drink Celsius energy drink.
• Drink at least 1 gallon of water.
• Eat 3 eggs+spinach for breakfast or fast (optional protein shake).
• Eat protein shake for lunch when home or salad/protein-rich meal out.
• Eat one plate of food for dinner (that Fleur prepares) when home or salad/protein-rich meal out.
• Completely avoid rice, pasta, bread, croutons, cereal, potatoes, oatmeal, and other simple carbs.
• Eat only hard-boiled eggs or raw vegetables between meals (and no salad dressing).
• Eat blueberries only in protein shake and gu gels/banana before/during 2+ hour workout.
• Do some form of exercise each day.

Monthly Goals for May:

• Read/Listen to all I & II Samuel and I & II Kings
• Complete 72 hour liquid fast (no solid foods).
• Enjoy 5 free meals (banquets, special occasions).
• Reduce weight to 157.
• 20 Days completing workout routine.
  • 3 minutes - plank
  • 2 minutes - hanging from bar
  • 200 push-ups
  • Complete Weight-training / Stretching / Cardio workout

Yearly 252 Goals:
1. Spiritual: Memorize the first two chapters of Philippians.
2. Physical: Complete a Half-Ironman in under 5 hours.
3. Relational: Eat a one on one meal with each of my sons and my wife at least once a month. 
4. Intellectual: Write a reflection post here each week.

Overall I'm very thankful for the progress in April. Here is a quick recap of the month:

Daily Goals for April

• Read at least three chapters of Galatians. - DONE
• Read Philippians 1-2. - DONE
• Read a few pages of another book. - DONE. Missed 2-3 days.
• Take Fish Oil, Magnesium, Vitamin C, Zinc, and Probiotics. - DONE. Missed 1 day.
• Drink Celsius energy drink. - DONE
• Drink at least 1 gallon of water. - DONE
• Eat 3 eggs+spinach for breakfast or fast (optional protein shake). - DONE
• Eat protein shake for lunch when home or salad/protein-rich meal out. - DONE
• Eat one plate of food for dinner when home or salad/protein-rich meal out. - DONE
• Avoid rice, pasta, bread, croutons, cereal, potatoes, oatmeal, and other simple carbs. - DONE
• Eat only hard-boiled eggs or raw vegetables between meals (and no salad dressing). - DONE
• Eat blueberries only in protein shake and gu gels/banana before/during 2+ hour workout. - DONE
• Do some form of exercise each day. - DONE

Monthly Goals for April:

• Read/Listen to all Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, and Ruth. - DONE
• Complete 24 hour fast. - DONE
• Enjoy 5 free meals (banquets, special occasions). - DONE
• Reduce weight to 158. - DONE
• 20 Days completing workout routine. - DONE
  • 3 minutes - plank
  • 2 minutes - hanging from bar
  • 200 push-ups
  • Complete Weight-training / Stretching / Cardio workout

One of my goalsl this month has been to do a 24 hour fast. I accomplished that about two weeks ago; but I've been talking to a friend of mine who is part of our 252 Circle this year and he has done some remarkable multi-day fasts recently and seen great results. While weight-loss is an immediate benefit, multi-day fasts help us realize how much influence food has one our choices and gives us an opportunity to exert more self-control to ensure we are controlling our food choices rather than being controlled by our food desires.

So, I started a 72 hour fast last night (Thursday) at 8PM. I plan to fast at least 72 hours and maybe longer depending on how it goes. My starting weight is 165 and we'll see how much I can lost. My goal weight for the end of April is 158 and I'm hopeful I can make significant progress towards that goal over the next few days.

I will consume lots of water, some bone broth, some electrolytes, and minimal juices to maintain hydration and nutrients.